This invention relates to wireless communications. It provides a method by which data can be delivered to stations that are participating in a wireless network but which are using a power management strategy and therefore are periodically in a low power mode and cannot transmit or receive data.
One of the main advantages of a wireless network is that it enables communication between mobile battery powered devices (stations) and also communication between these devices and devices connected to other communications networks. One of the critical factors for such mobile devices is to enable them to operate for a long period of time. In designing such a device a designer aims to reduce the overall power consumption and therefore, increase either the operating time of the device, or reduce the number and size of the batteries required to power the device and thus make the device smaller.
In such a battery powered device each of the subsystems has a particular power requirement. Some of these subsystems have higher power requirements than others and in order to increase the overall operating time of such devices it would be advantageous to be able to switch off some subsystems or operate them in a low power mode until they are required. All wireless devices use power when they transmit or receive data (and in most cases will consume significantly more power in transmit mode than in receive mode). It is therefore very advantageous to minimise the time when such a device has to be fully powered up (in an awake state) to send or receive data and maximise the time when it can be in a powered down state (asleep).
A station which implements power saving functions can be in one of three states:
In Power Saving (PS) mode and awake (or active);
In Power Saving (PS) mode and asleep or inactive;
Non-Power Saving mode.
The invention provides a means by which unicast data messages can be delivered to a station operating in a power saving mode; it also provides a means by which broadcast messages (including multicast messages) can be delivered to a station operating in a power saving mode.
According to one aspect of this invention there is provided a method of operating a wireless network containing a plurality of stations, one station being designated as a control station and the remaining stations having an active state and an inactive state which incurs lower power consumption than the active state, wherein:
the control station periodically transmits a beacon signal;
each remaining station periodically enters its active state to receive the beacon signal; and
if there are data for a remaining station to receive, that station transmits a status signal to indicate to other remaining stations that it is active and able to receive data.
In one embodiment of this first aspect, a station (A) that wants to send data in a unicast message to a station (B) in power saving (PS) mode sends a Power Management Service Request message to a Control Point (CP). The CP transmits a Control Point Beacon (CPB) at regular intervals, in which it includes a wake-up command for the station B in power saving mode. Station B periodically wakes up and receives the CPB. If the CPB contains a wake-up flag for station B then station B broadcasts a Power Management Status message, containing its identity, to indicate that it is awake. When station A receives the Power Management Status message it can start sending data to station B. The PS station goes back to sleep when it has not received or sent any unicast data messages for a specified time, the PowerMgtTimeout period, and the last CPB it received did not have its wake-up flag set.
According to another aspect of this invention there is provided a method of operating a wireless network containing a plurality of stations, one station being designated as a control station and the remaining stations having an active state and an inactive state which incurs lower power consumption than the active state, wherein:
the control station periodically transmits a beacon signal containing a flag value indicating whether a broadcast period is in progress and a count value indicating time to elapse until commencement of a next possible broadcast period;
each remaining station periodically enters its active state to receive the beacon signal;
each remaining station remains in its active state if the broadcast flag value indicates a broadcast period is in progress, and otherwise returns to its inactive state; and
the control station stores broadcast messages (including multicast messages) transmitted by any remaining station outside a broadcast period, and broadcasts such stored messages during a subsequent broadcast period.
In one implementation of this second aspect, the CP at regular intervals transmits a CPB in which there is a counter that identifies when a broadcast period will commence. All stations in power saving mode will wake up at the start of this broadcast period to receive the CPB. The CPB also contains a broadcast flag. If the broadcast flag is set the PS stations remain awake and only go back to sleep when they receive a CPB in which the broadcast flag is clear. Stations with broadcast messages to send do not wait until this broadcast period starts, but send them as appropriate. The Control Point receives and stores such broadcast messages which are transmitted outside the broadcast period. If at the start of the broadcast period the CP has any broadcast messages stored, it will set the broadcast flag in the CPB and re-broadcast the stored messages during the broadcast period. The broadcast flag in the CPB remains set until the CP has re-broadcast all the broadcast messages it has stored.